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class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Facebook Inc has changed a privacy setting on its social network, limiting the audience that sees new users' first posts in a reversal of a feature that had critics said forced people to over-share personal information. The company said on Thursday that the status updates that new users post will now be viewable only to friends by default, instead of being viewable to the general public as it had previously been. class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Facebook users will continue to be able to customize their settings so that status updates can be seen by as big or small an audience as they want. The change to the default setting, which Facebook quietly implemented a few weeks ago, is the result of feedback from users, Mike Nowak, a Facebook product manager, said in an interview with Reuters. "Sometimes people have felt that they've been unpleasantly surprised that their information was more public than they expected or int

class="mandelbrot_refrag"> EBay Inc came under pressure on Thursday over a massive hacking of customer data as three U.S. states began investigating the e-commerce company's security practices. Connecticut, Florida and Illinois said they are jointly investigating the matter. New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman requested class="mandelbrot_refrag"> eBay provide free credit monitoring for everyone affected. Details about what happened are still unclear because eBay has provided few details about the attack. It is also unclear what legal authority states have over eBay's handling of the matter. The states' quick move shows that authorities are serious about holding companies accountable for securing data following high-profile breaches at other companies, including retailers Target Corp, Neiman Marcus and Michaels and credit monitoring bureau Experian Plc. Congress and the Federal Trade Commission are investigating the Target breach,

Digital video recorder maker class="mandelbrot_refrag"> TiVo Inc reported a 30 percent rise in quarterly revenue, helped by strong growth in subscriptions through European cable company partners such as Virgin Media and Ono. _0"> TiVo's shares rose 5 percent in extended trading. Cable subscribers are turning to TiVo's set-top boxes that also allow them to access online video services such as class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Netflix Inc, Hulu and class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Google Inc's YouTube. class="mandelbrot_refrag"> TiVo said total subscribers in the first quarter crossed 4.5 million, including net additions of 341,000 in its cable and satellite television class="mandelbrot_refrag"> business . The business provides digital video recording service through the company's and service providers' set-top boxes. Liberty Global Plc unit Virgin Media said on May 7 that net subscriber additi

class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Hewlett-Packard Co plans to cut as many as 16,000 more jobs in a major ramp-up of CEO Meg Whitman's years-long effort to turn around the personal computer maker and relieve pressure on its profit margins. On Thursday, the company posted a disappointing 1 percent drop in quarterly revenue, as it struggled to maintain its grip on the shrinking personal computer market while protecting profit margins. That marked its 11th consecutive quarterly sales decline. Shares in HP closed down 2.3 percent at $31.78, after the company inadvertently posted the results on its website more than half an hour before the closing bell. HP, whose sprawling global operations have more than 250,000 employees, had originally planned to shed 34,000 jobs as part of its corporate overhaul. On Thursday, it estimated 11,000 to 16,000 more positions needed to go, scattered across different countries and class="mandelbrot_refrag"> business areas. Whitm

A cloud class="mandelbrot_refrag"> software boom has nudged startups into unlikely realms such as dairy farms, yoga studios and back-of-the-building loading docks, leading venture capitalists to hope for stratospheric returns. Venture capitalists poured more than $11 billion into class="mandelbrot_refrag"> software last year, more than into any other sector and about double the amount in 2010, according to the National Venture Capital Association. The number of deals in which venture firms have backed software startups has risen by about half in the same time, to 1,570 last year. Not everyone shares their enthusiasm. Wall Street investors are voting with their wallets when it comes to the hottest sector, known as "software as a service" or SaaS. Internet-delivered, subscription-based software has slumped this year, with big companies like Workday Inc and Salesforce.com Inc each shedding around 9 percent of their market value. Venture capital

Marvell Technology Group Ltd's quarterly gross margin fell as demand for its chips used in third-generation mobile communication outweighed a rise in sales of its more profitable 4G LTE chips. Marvell shares fell 3 percent in extended trading, despite the company's better-than-expected first-quarter results. Smartphone sales growth is shifting away from North America to class="mandelbrot_refrag"> China where buyers favor handsets priced below $200 over top-notch devices such as Apple Inc's iPhone. "Our mix was more skewed to 3G even though LTE did well and our margins came slightly below what was expected in the quarter," Chief Financial Officer Michael Rashkin said in a post-earnings conference call. Marvell's gross margin shrunk to 48.4 percent for the first quarter ended May 3 from 54.3 percent a year earlier. The company said it expects second-quarter adjusted profit of 28 cents per share, "plus or minus two cents," and reve

Video game retailer class="mandelbrot_refrag"> GameStop Corp reported a 7 percent rise in quarterly revenue, driven by growth in its mobile class="mandelbrot_refrag"> business and demand for new games consoles made by Sony Corp and class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Microsoft Corp . GameStop's shares rose as much as 5 percent in extended trading on Thursday, after the company also reported a better-than-expected first-quarter profit. class="mandelbrot_refrag"> GameStop forecast second-quarter class="mandelbrot_refrag"> earnings of 12-20 cents per share. Analysts are expecting earnings of 17 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. To combat falling video game software sales, GameStop has stepped up sales of used games and hardware in recent years, as well as expanding its range of digital and mobile products to include iOS and Android devices in some stores. The Grapevine, Texas-based company said

class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Hewlett-Packard Co plans to cut as many as 16,000 more jobs in a major ramp-up of CEO Meg Whitman's years-long effort to turn around the personal computer maker and relieve pressure on its profit margins. Whitman said the turnaround remained on track and her raised target reflected how HP continued to find areas to streamline across its broad portfolio, which encompasses computing, networking, storage and class="mandelbrot_refrag"> software . But some analysts wondered whether it signaled a worsening outlook for the coming year, or if more jobs may be cut. "The rationale makes sense," said RBC analyst Amit Daryanani. But "you do worry if there's a finality to this process, or if it's an ongoing thing that may affect morale at the end of the day. So far the trend has been worrisome." HP, whose sprawling global operations employ more than 250,000, estimated about three years ago when it first hat

class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Google Inc ( id="symbol_GOOGL.O_0"> GOOGL.O ) is developing a new 7-inch tablet that can capture 3-D images, and plans to produce about 4,000 of these prototypes beginning next month, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people briefed on the company's plans. _0"> The device, which is part of Google's Advanced Technology and Projects group 'Project Tango,' will have two back cameras, infrared depth sensors and advanced class="mandelbrot_refrag"> software that can capture precise three-dimensional images of objects, according to the Journal. Google's Project Tango is a platform for Android phones and tablets designed to track the full 3-dimensional motion of the device as you hold it, while simultaneously creating a map of the environment around it. The Project's flagship product, a prototype smartphone, released in February has similar sensors and is designed to create a three

For satellite imagery provider class="mandelbrot_refrag"> DigitalGlobe Inc, a $400 million-a-year global market awaits as soon as the United States relaxes regulations on the sale of higher-resolution images. That day cannot come soon enough for the only provider of commercial satellite images in the United States. Until then, class="mandelbrot_refrag"> DigitalGlobe cannot use its technology to full effect, Chief Financial Officer Yancey Spruill told Reuters in an interview. "There is a market opportunity with a roughly $400 million addressable market that we cannot participate in today because of the regulatory regime of our government," Spruill said. Longmont, Colorado-based DigitalGlobe sells satellite images used by governments and companies such as Google Inc to make maps. It also provides imaging services and satellite monitoring for mining and oil companies. DigitalGlobe has waited almost a year since applying with the U.S. Departmen

Panasonic Corp said it expected to become the sole manufacturer in class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Tesla Motors Inc's planned multibillion-dollar U.S. battery factory, firming up its commitment to the electric car maker's project. The Japanese class="mandelbrot_refrag"> electronics conglomerate had until this week made only cautious comments about Tesla's plans, for which the carmaker is seeking total investment of around $3 billion in addition to the $2 billion it has pledged to contribute directly. Panasonic does not have a timeframe for a decision on its investment but any expenditure this year would be small, Yoshio Ito, senior managing executive officer and president of the Japanese firm's automotive and industrial division said on Friday. "As we're not anticipating any sudden tenfold increases in demand or anything like that, we think it is right to break it up step-by-step and invest gradually," Ito told reporters at a

Hewlett-Packard Co's shares rose as much as 7 percent on Friday, a day after the personal computer maker said it would cut as many as 16,000 more jobs and forecast strong free cash flow for the year. _0"> At least four brokerages raised their price targets on the company's stock, which was one of the most traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Chief Executive Meg Whitman said on Thursday that HP's turnaround plan remained on track and the raised target on job cuts reflected how the company continued to find areas to streamline operations across its broad portfolio. The company had set a job cuts target of 27,000 when it started its restructuring in 2012, but increased it to 34,000 last year and then to 50,000 on Thursday. HP had 317,500 employees as of October 31, 2013. "The impact from these additional headcount reductions are expected to create additional run rate gross savings of about $1bn/year in FY16," JPMorgan analyst Rod Hall wrote in a note

Samsung class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Electronics Co Ltd is developing a smartwatch that can make or receive calls without having to be tethered to a mobile phone, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday. _0"> Samsung, the world's largest maker of smartphones, is in discussions with unidentified U.S., Korean and European telecommunications carriers about a so-called "watch-phone" that it hopes to unveil between June and July, the Journal reported, citing people familiar with the company's plans. The current crop of smartwatches, such as Samsung's own Galaxy Gear, have to be linked to a phone to receive and send messages and perform other basic functions. But the proposed watch-phone, which will run on Samsung's Tizen operating class="mandelbrot_refrag"> software , can take photos and handle email independently and will come equipped with a heart monitor, the newspaper reported. Samsung declined to comment. Major tech

Much has changed in the motor racing world since Jacques Villeneuve pulled his car into Victory Lane 19 years ago and chugged on the traditional quart of milk that goes to the Indianapolis 500 winner. Back at the Brickyard to run the 500 for the first time in nearly two decades, and where the youngest driver in Sunday's race was two months old when the Canadian won here in 1995, Villeneuve has had to familiarize himself with a new car, new rules and new faces. Even Villeneuve appears different, evolved from the intense, humorless competitor that captured the Formula One drivers crown in 1997.   true       By his own admission, the Quebecer has mellowed, now more patient on and off the race track. But listen to Villeneuve for a moment and it is as if time has stood still. While his delivery may be different, the 43-year-old remains as opinionated and outspoken as ever, still as fearless at speaking his mind as he is behind the wheel. Since leaving Formula One in 2006, Villene

An exhilarating run of six birdies in a row, two shy of the European Tour record, catapulted veteran Thomas Bjorn into a five-stroke lead after the BMW PGA Championship third round on Saturday. After an overnight downpour delayed the start of play by three hours, it was raining birdies for the 43-year-old Dane as he left a world-class field trailing in his wake with a dynamic five-under-par 67 at the tour's flagship event. Bjorn, who has been at the top of the leaderboard since firing a record 62 in the opening round, picked up strokes at the 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th and 16th before adding another at 18 to rack up a 15-under total of 201 at Wentworth. The performance was all the more laudable after he began his round with an ugly double-bogey six at the first caused by a hooked drive. Luke Donald (68), the 2011 and 2012 champion, was in second place on 206, one ahead of Irishman Shane Lowry (73). Former world number one Rory McIlroy (69), looking more assured with every

After years of building up a presence at the Indianapolis 500 there will be a noticeable lack of girl power when the green flag drops at the Brickyard on Sunday. At one time, the only females on starting grids were the glamorous models holding placards with drivers' names on them, but last year there were four women in last year's 33-car field at the Indianapolis 500. But on Sunday when Pippa Mann takes the command to "start your engines," the Briton will be waving the female flag alone. "It's actually a little strange, I'm used to seeing a few other women out here," said Mann, who will be lining up in her third Indy 500. "I don't notice it when I'm out in the car but I do when I look around the garage. It feels a little odd to be just me." Women have been part of every Indy 500 discussion since 2005 when Danica Patrick burst onto the IndyCar scene claiming rookie of the year honors after she led the race and finished fourth.

Real Madrid secured a 10th European Cup when they snatched a stoppage-time equalizer before extra-time goals by Gareth Bale, Marcelo and a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty gave them a 4-1 win over Atletico Madrid in the Champions League final on Saturday. Atletico, who won the Spanish league title a week ago, looked set to complete a double after Diego Godin’s 36th-minute header, helped by a blunder from Real keeper Iker Casillas, put them in control of the first European final between teams from the same city. Real attacked relentlessly in the second half at Lisbon's Stadium of Light but had to wait until the third minute of stoppage time for an equalizer when Sergio Ramos headed in powerfully from a corner. Atletico looked a spent force in extra time and Real completed the comeback win when world record signing Bale headed them into the lead in the 110th minute before Marcelo slammed in a late third. Ronaldo, the class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Portugal captain playing i

Real Madrid overcame Atletico in the Champions League final because coach Carlo Ancelotti was able to adjust his tactics and go on the attack in time to rescue the game while his opposite number Diego Simeone had no cards left to play Ancelotti fielded a cautious starting lineup at Lisbon's Stadium of Light, with Sami Khedira in a deep-lying central role despite having only recently returned from knee surgery, and Real were outplayed for long periods in the first half. Atletico deservedly went ahead when Diego Godin outjumped a sluggish-looking Khedira and nodded the ball over a stranded Iker Casillas in the 36th minute and they looked comfortable with their lead well into the second period. Ancelotti responded with around half an hour remaining by hauling off Khedira and left back Fabio Coentrao and replacing them with attacking midfielder Isco and zippy fullback Marcelo. The tone of the match changed immediately, with Real pushing forward relentlessly and carving out a numb

Colin Montgomerie sank a 30-foot birdie putt at the final hole to earn a one-stroke lead over Bernhard Langer after the third round of the Senior PGA Championship in Benton Harbor, Michigan on Saturday. _0"> After missing a five-foot par putt at the 17th hole, the Scot made amends at the last when his slick downhill putt broke perfectly into the middle of the cup for a three-under-par 68 at Harbor Shores. On a day when overnight co-leader Tom Watson fell four shots from the lead with a 72, Montgomerie edged within sight of his first official victory in the United States. "Any time you're one ahead of (Langer, you're) doing something right," Montgomerie told NBC TV after posting a seven-under 206 total with one round left. After having complimented his great European rival, Montgomerie wasted no time tweaking the German, who is renowned for playing with glacial speed. "It's tough in many ways because he's not the quickest," said Montgom

Kenya's women shattered their world record in the infrequently run 4x1500 meters relay when they clocked 16 minutes, 33.58 seconds at the inaugural IAAF World Relays on Saturday. _0"> The Hellen Obiri-anchored team crushed the previous record of 17:05.72 that a different Kenyan squad had set in Nairobi last month. The United States also dipped under the former record as the Americans ran 16:55.23 with class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Australia placing third in 17:08.65. (Reporting by Gene Cherry in Nassau, Bahamas; Editing by Ian Ransom )

Japan's Hideki Matsuyama moved into a four-way share of the lead at the Crowne Plaza Invitational in Texas on Saturday, setting up what promises to be a wild final round with 36 players jammed within four strokes. _0"> Matsuyama carded a bogey-free six-under 64 to join Americans David Toms (65), Chad Campbell (68) and Chris Stroud (69) at seven-under 203. American Kevin Chappell shot 63, the low round of the week, to join a group of six one stroke behind, while newly-crowned world number one Adam Scott (66) is among another group of seven only two strokes back. However, so many players are in striking distance that the only thing that can be stated with confidence is that the winner will have to go low on Sunday. Chappell had visions of shooting the magical 59 when he holed a bunker shot for eagle at the par-five 11th to go eight-under on the day. He needed to pick up three more shots to break 60, but a bogey at the 14th hole brought him back to reality. Still, he ha

Olympic silver medalist Yohan Blake led Jamaica to a world record in the men's 4x200 meters relay when they clocked one minute 18.63 seconds at the IAAF World Relays on Saturday. _0"> The sizzling time clipped 0.05 seconds off the mark the Carl Lewis-anchored U.S. team set in 1994. St. Kitts and Nevis finished a surprising second in 1:20.51 while class="mandelbrot_refrag"> France took third in a European record 1:20.66 after the U.S. team were disqualified. (Reporting by Gene Cherry in Nassau, Bahamas; Editing by Ian Ransom )

World number one class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Serena Williams begins her French Open title on Sunday against local favorite Alize Lim, a training mate she uses to hang around with off the courts. _0"> American Williams, who is bidding for an 18th grand slam singles title to move alongside Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova, is third on Court Philippe Chatrier in what is likely to be a chilly, and possibly rainy day in Paris. "We were talking about it before the draw was made. It's ironic, I guess. It is what it is," the 32-year-old, a huge favorite after winning the Rome title last week, told reporters after discovering her first opponent. Before her on center court is Swiss crowd favorite class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Roger Federer , who takes on unheralded Slovakian Lukas Lacko as he looks to add to his record 17 grand slam titles having not won a major since Wimbledon 2012. Closing proceedings will be Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, probably

The Los Angeles Kings rode a strong second period from center Jeff Carter and goaltender Jonathan Quick on Saturday to a 4-3 Game Three victory over the Chicago Blackhawks, taking a 2-1 series lead in the NHL's Western Conference Final. After falling behind 2-1 in the opening period at the class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Staples Center, Carter scored the game-tying goal and then produced the assist for Tyler Toffoli’s go-ahead score, his third point of the game after assisting on the Kings' opening goal to Slava Voynov. The two goals came from just four shots in the period, with Quick proving a rock at the other end to turn the game the home team's way. Quick let through a double to Chicago captain Jonathan Toews in the opening period, but was outstanding in the second, making 10 saves despite facing nearly six minutes of Blackhawk power plays. Drew Doughty then provided an important insurance goal midway through the final period before Patrick Sharp added a

The Miami Heat took a 2-1 lead over the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals after coming back from 15 points down in the second quarter to win 99-87 on Saturday. Miami's habit of making a slow start was particularly acute - they trailed 17-4 in the first quarter and were 37-22 behind midway through the second as the Pacers made them pay for some loose turnovers. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra shuffled his pack however and Miami came out strong in the third quarter though and took the lead for the first time on the night with a LeBron James dunk putting them 52-51 up with 7:36 left in the quarter. The game turned decisively in Miami's direction when Wade made a superb steal and set up a three-pointer from Ray Allen and put the Heat eight points ahead. Allen (16 points) had three other three-pointers in the final quarter for the Heat while James made 26 points and Dwyane Wade 23. While James and Wade top-scored, James was quick to praise the contribution of some of

It took Atletico Madrid 40 years to reach a second European Cup final and it might be a similarly long wait for a third appearance with wealthy clubs set to poach the La Liga champions' key assets. A week after Diego Godin headed the goal against Barcelona that won them the La Liga title for the first time since 1996, the Uruguayan nodded in a corner against Real Madrid in the final of the Champions League in Lisbon. They looked set for a miraculous league and European double before Sergio Ramos equalized in the 93rd minute to force extra time and deflate Atletico, who collapsed to a 4-1 loss after the extra 30 minutes. The effects of a limited squad finally catching up with them against a blockbuster Real lineup, clearly fresher as the game wore on. The loss resembled their sole previous final appearance when they were denied victory in the 1974 European Cup final against Bayern Munich by a late equalizer before losing the replay 4-0. Despite their remarkable successes this

Polish third seed Agnieszka Radwanska capitalized on Chinese Zhang Shuai's meltdown and advanced into the second round of the French Open with a 6-3 6-0 win on Sunday. _0"> As clouds rapidly gathered over Court Philippe Chatrier on a chilly morning, the first seven class="mandelbrot_refrag"> games went against serve before Radwanska bagged the remaining eight games. She ended her hapless opponent's ordeal on the first match point with a fine volley to set up a meeting with Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic or French wildcard Mathilde Johansson. "It's important that I settled in two sets and spent only one hour on court," Radwanska told a courtside interviewer. (Reporting by Julien Pretot ; Editing by Pritha Sarkar )

class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Roger Federer barely broke sweat as he eased into the second round of the French Open with a 6-2 6-4 6-2 win against unheralded Slovakian Lukas Lacko on Sunday. _0"> The fourth seed, chasing a second Roland Garros trophy and a record-extending 18th grand slam title, produced some fine attacking tennis in an 84-minute master class. Swiss Federer, who claimed his last grand slam title at Wimbledon in 2012, won a lot of quick points thanks to thumping backhands and whipping forehands on court Philippe Chatrier. He will next face Portuguese Gastao Elias or Argentine Diego Sebastian Schwartzman. (Reporting by Julien Pretot , editing by Pritha Sarkar)

Gary Stal has had to push personal tragedy aside to play in the BMW PGA Championship after his father made an emotional trip to Wentworth to inform the Frenchman his mother had died of cancer. The little-known Stal is only featuring at the European Tour's flagship event on the outskirts of London as a late reserve after fellow countryman Victor Dubuisson pulled out with a damaged shoulder at the start of the week. "I played in honor of my father today," the 22-year-old told reporters on Saturday after signing for a three-under-par 69 in the third round to chalk up a five-under total of 211, 10 strokes adrift of runaway leader Thomas Bjorn of Denmark.   true       "Tomorrow I will fight for my mother. I will be very aggressive in my play." Stal, who won the French amateur championship by an eight-shot margin three years ago, secured his 2014 European Tour card at Qualifying School. He may be making his debut at the BMW PGA Championship but he said his golf

Former European number one Robert Karlsson failed to mark his 500th Tour appearance with a standout display this week but the Swede could still look back with pride at a career packed with success. The North Carolina-based professional readily admits he is toiling with his game at the moment and takes encouragement from the form being shown by contemporaries like Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez, 50, and Dane Thomas Bjorn, 43. "I've seen a lot of things traveling around the world in my career, seen a lot of ups and downs," Karlsson told Reuters in an interview after a poor closing 78 left him way down the field on six-over 294 in the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth. "But if someone had told me after my first five events that I'd play in 500 of these things and win 11 times, play in the Ryder Cup a couple of times and also win the World Cup alongside Henrik Stenson I'd have been very happy. "I haven't done well enough to play in the Ryder Cup the

The script was simple enough: host the soccer World Cup, win it for a record sixth time and ride a wave of national euphoria to another four years in power. Yet Brazil's ruling Workers' Party may find it's not that easy. Recent history shows little correlation between being crowned world soccer champions and winning elections, despite endless speculation to the contrary among Brazilians of all political stripes. At best, President Dilma Rousseff could get a temporary bump from a victory for the heavily-fancied home team in July but it would likely wear off in a few weeks, leaving more than two months for reality to set back in before election day on October 5. At worst, a disastrous early exit from the tournament could add to frustrations with the way class="mandelbrot_refrag"> Brazil is run and fuel a growing desire for change. With no home team to root for, more Brazilians might feel tempted to join anti-World Cup street protests, creating a poten